Christian McCaffrey is most often referred to as the best player on the Stanford roster. But what if he’s not?

Consider the impact of redshirt sophomore Solomon Thomas, a 6-foot-3, 273-pound defensive end selected as the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season.

“He’s just scratching the surface,” Stanford coach David Shaw said. “I’m excited to see where his career leads.”

In a much-needed 17-10 victory at Notre Dame, which didn’t erase all the skepticism after an ugly two-game losing streak, the Cardinal took a step in the right direction.

Thomas was a huge factor, with 12 tackles — 10 solo — plus 1½ sacks. On the last play of the game, he secured the win by forcing a fumble on fourth down with Notre Dame threatening to tie the game inside the red zone.

What was his key to success?

“Honestly, I just was able to read my blocks really fast,” Thomas said. “My film study, my preparation throughout the week gave me an advantage of knowing what was going to happen and just was able to take advantage of that and play with fanatical effort and hustle to the ball, be violent with my hands and doing everything that (defensive line) coach (Diron) Reynolds has us do at practice.”

Looking at him now, it’s hard to fathom that Thomas was born seven weeks premature and weighed only 4 pounds.

“I guess I was ready for the world more than my mom,” said Thomas, who was also named Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Week after a 22-13 win at UCLA on Sept. 24 in which he returned a fumble 42 yards for a touchdown as time expired.

Born in Chicago, he was a four-star recruit out of Texas, according to ESPN. And it’s obvious that Thomas has a passion for the sport.

“I just love football, I just love the game,” he said. “My high school coaches, they showed me how great football can be, how important it is. It’s just such a blessing to be able to play this game, honestly. A lot of people want to do it, a lot of people can’t do it, and we’re playing college football at Stanford University. It is such a blessing and such a privilege to play.

“You just want to take advantage of every single moment you have and not take any of it for granted.”

Last year, he recorded 39 tackles and 3½ sacks in 14 games. He’s on pace to shatter those numbers, already surpassing his sack total with four in six games.

Thomas nearly doubled his amount of solo tackles for the season with his effort at Notre Dame.

“You don’t typically see statistical games like that from a defensive lineman,” Shaw said. “Solomon is that rare combination of athletic ability, speed, mentality and technique. He’s great with his hands, he’s determined every single play to make a play. He’s one of those guys that doesn’t stay blocked. And he takes his leadership role very seriously. He’s very demanding of his teammates, so before you can do that you have to be demanding of yourself.”

It’s one of the reasons he was selected as a team captain.

“Every day I want to prove to them that they chose me as a captain for a reason,” Thomas said. “That I’m going to be a leader for them, that I’m going to give them everything I have, because the team and these coaches and this program is what’s most important to me.”

• On a personal note, Thomas is listed as a “lover of all animals” on his bio.

“I’m a huge dog lover,” he said. “Anytime I see a dog, I just want to reach out and just say hi to it. This makes me happy. I’m just an animal fanatic. I think they’re so interesting, their primal instincts, the way they live.”

Does his affinity for animals include buffaloes, such as the live mascot for Colorado?

“Ralphie is awesome,” Thomas said. “When we went there last year, I tried to say hi to Ralphie, but I wasn’t allowed to.”

• Kickoff at Stanford (4-2, 2-2 Pac-12) against Colorado (5-2, 3-1) is scheduled for noon Saturday. It’s the earliest start time for the Cardinal since a noon kickoff on Nov. 10, 2012.

“We’re definitely excited to play during the day,” Thomas said. “Personally, I get all this anticipation during the day and I just kind of get a little anxious. For me, it’s nice not having to wait.”

Vytas Mazeika is a sports reporter at The Daily News based out of Menlo Park. He covers athletics at every level, from high school to Stanford to the pros. He also designs the sports pages and copy edits for The Daily News print edition. Mazeika graduated from Carlmont High in 1994 and earned an English bachelor's degree from UCLA.